Tag Rugby

Crystal Palace National Sports Stadium was the TAG Rugby’s team destination as we ventured there to represent Islington in the London Youth Games Finals. Upon arrival we were given the schedule for the day which saw us placed in a group of four with Northcote Lodge (Wandsworth), Cromer Road (Barnet) and St Josephs (Havering).

First up were Cromer Road and we went into a 2-0 lead with tries from Han and Stephane, but the Barnet school fought back well to level matters up as the game finished 2-2.We then turned on the style as we beat St Josephs from Havering 4-1, with Han and Stephane again scoring the tries.With qualification to the last 16 assured we took on group leaders Northcote Lodge, a preparatory school based in Wandsworth, which has a Clay Pigeon team amongst many others, secondary school choices for the children which include Eton and Harrow, and a Director and Assistant of PE alongside their Head of PE! So we were definitely up against it, and struggled early on as we went 2-0 down. Han pulled a one back, but another try sealed it for the Wandsworth school.

From here the final 16 were placed into another group of four, and first up for us were Fairholme Primary from Hounslow. Their superior experience told as defensively they were to strong and won 2-0. The next game was against Dorothy Barley Primary School from Basildon. A pulsating encounter saw us lose 3-2 (Han & Stephane) in a game which could have gone either way. Our final opponents were a school we had faced before, Byron Court from Brent. Again both teams looked to attack, but it was our turn to come out on top as we won 3-2, with Cameron, adding to tries from Han and Stephane.

The day was not over as we then had to go into another group of four to determine our final placing which would have been from 9th-12th. We started well beating The Minister School from Croydon 2-1, then drew 1-1 in a tough and physical game against Southwark school, St Josephs RC. Our final opponents were Days Lane Primary from Bexley, whom beat us 1-0. I think by then the children were pretty exhausted with the four boys Archie, Han, Stephane and Cameron playing in every game and the three girls Ella, Hen and Layla on a rotation basis with one resting and two playing.

A long day for all involved but thoroughly rewarding and enjoyable, as yet again the children left their mark on the competition. On the attacking front, Stephane, Han and Cameron took the plaudits, whilst captain Archie’s tagging skills were immense. Ella, Henrietta and Layla played out of their skins. The games were very physical but they were not affected and relished the challenges, and I wouldn't have swapped them for any of the other girls there.

Our final placing saw the school finish 11th in the whole of London, pipped for a top ten finish by one try. New rules have made the game even harder but the children responded brilliantly, up against some schools who have far more experience, better facilities and opportunities, but we never looked out of our depth and two of the teams that had beaten us earlier, the schools from Hounslow and Wandsworth finished 2nd and 3rd respectively, which shows what we were up against.

Also a final thank you to Liz (Archie’s mum) for coming along on the day, who ended up doing all sorts of jobs she probably wasn't expecting to do!

PTO for pics.